


Sun Poet's Society

by Lyrus



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Apollo being a good parent, Bad Poetry, M/M, Nico forced to sing, Silly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-14
Updated: 2015-11-14
Packaged: 2018-05-01 14:34:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5209478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyrus/pseuds/Lyrus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Funny little piece I put together while watching Dead Poet's Society. It is nothing amazing, but I found it grin worthy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sun Poet's Society

“Shh! Would you-“a female hissed. The sound of shuffling clothes and stomping feet interrupted her complaint.  
“Don’t shove!” another snapped, thrusting an elbow to fend off the attacker in the shadows.  
“Mark, don’t slam-“ Snap! The door shut with a crisp noise, wood hitting frame as it slipped from the young man’s fingers forcefully.  
“Would you all shut up!?” The deeper tone of an older teenager silenced the hustle and bustle, the whispers and mutterings. “We almost got caught last month, Jack, and it was your fault!”  
Hushed footsteps pattered down the stairs of the golden plated cabin, the small group of kids and teenagers trying to keep quiet. Leaves crunched and cracked under flip-flops and sandals, hoodies were tussled against warm bodies as a winter’s breeze drafted from the woods through the line of cabins.  
A young girl, no older than 13 was the last to leave the cabin clutching a flute as she followed the group of children making their quiet way into the woods. 

From his own cabin Nico sat up in bed, his comic book falling from his bare chest to his mattress. He rubbed his eyes, trying to collect his thoughts. The sound of giggling roused him from his light sleep. He scrambled over to his window and shoved the dark grey curtains aside, peering out into the night. 

In the distance he could see the small group of kids, all with a mop of blonde hair, each wearing a bright orange hoodie. Some carried instruments and others had books. They jeered and occasionally laughed while a taller member of the group shushed them. Once under control they disappeared into the fog that lead deep into the woods. 

Frowning with curiosity and concern Nico grabbed his own black hoodie, the lettering white with the number 13 on the back and an old symbol of Hades. He slid the hoodie on and shoved his bare feet into his tennis shoes. Once he was certain he wouldn’t be heard he set off after the group. 

It was an easy task, following the other campers. Occasionally they would come to an abrupt halt and hide. They would dive into a patch of bushes, or lean with their back pressed close to a tree. Above a harpy would fly over, her dark hair swaying in the wind as she prowled the sky, looking below for any campers out of bed. 

Nico melted into the shadows, disappearing as she passed. He momentarily recalled a story from the Aries cabin, one that they had shared around the campfire. Dale insisted he’d been caught out of bed, sneaking into the Aphrodite’s cabin (Nico seriously doubted that part), when he viciously fought the harpy. He swore that he’d sliced her wing off and broken the wicked woman’s nose, but Nico didn’t miss the dismissive roll of their camp director’s eyes. 

The harpy glided over-head and the campers all began to move through he forest again. For twenty minutes they walked, Nico pursing at a safe distance, watching as the small group became more rowdy the farther they got from the camp cabins. 

One boy began to wildly play his saxophone while the others jeered, playfully shoving him around or clutching their ears painfully. 

Another recited a few lines of poetry, the group stopping to have a good laugh at a particularly funny line. From what Nico could gather it had something about cantaloupes being related to antelopes. 

Nico’s deep brown eyes drifted to the leader of the group, someone he knew quite well. Even in the dark he could make out Will’s handsomely messy blonde hair and his beautiful tan skin. Hell, what kind of a boyfriend would he be if he couldn’t figure out it was Will leading this wild expedition? Although what the Apollo cabin was doing remained a mystery.  
As Nico gingerly made his way around a large boulder his heart hammered with excitement. Over the past year he and Will had been getting closer, spending nights in the Hade’s cabin, working together to lead activities. Only one thing had baffled Nico. Will’s consistent inability to hang out the first Friday of every month. 

There was always some wild excuse waiting. His cabin had battled a miniature Hydra stocked in the woods and they needed medics, he couldn’t find his favorite pajamas and thus needed to search his cabin extensively. How about the time one of his siblings made brownies that caused him to be “deathly ill” (pun intended)? The list was impressive, although annoying. 

Now, Nico would finally get his answer. He would finally figure out what Will did the night of the first Friday of the month. 

The group began to slow and Nico darted behind a tree, using the shadows to hide his face as he peered out at Will and the other children. 

They were standing at Zues’s fist, the same formation of rocks that had once led to the labyrinth, a place that Nico wasn’t in a hurry to see again. Next to Will stood the opening to a small cave, the entrance only large enough for one person. Will ushered each person passed him with a waving of his hand. After everyone had entered Will crouched and ducked his head to disappear into the dark tunnel. 

Nico’s eyebrows furrowed together, momentarily wondering if the labyrinth was still there. As quickly as the thought came Nico pushed it away. Will wouldn’t be leading the Apollo cabin into a death trap, not to mention the labyrinth had collapsed some years ago. No, there was something else at the end of that tunnel.

Rather than barge in after them Nico took a few minutes to walk around the giant boulders, trying to peek through cracks, or find a back entrance. It was only when he climbed on top of the natural structure he found a small hole, only large enough for him to fit his head through. The smaller tunnel seemed to go down quite some ways, far enough that he could see a small light and smell the distinct aroma of smoke from a fire. 

Growing more curious by the moment he dropped to his knees and crouched over the hole, tilting his head to the side, his shoulder length black hair falling onto his face. Listening closely he heard laughter and more bad music, then Will’s voice speaking clearly. 

“Alright, alright!” He chimed. Nico could hear the smile in his voice, so rich with laughter it seemed to warm his body like a ray of sunshine. “Let’s get on with it, we lost enough time having to stop for the harpy.”

Nico leaned closer to the hole, making sure he wouldn’t miss anything.

“I hereby welcome everyone to the Sun Poet’s Society.” Will said, earning a rather loud cheer from all his siblings. For a moment Nico even heard the sound of someone banging on some bongos.

“As usual we will start with the introductory poem, so chill out. Lyla, play some tunes.” 

Will fell silent and the sound of a mellow saxophone drifted through the cave and out of the opening that Nico leaned over. It went on for a few seconds, Nico momentarily loosing himself, his pulse even changing slightly to match the mood of the music. Finally, there was only the silence of the forest. Then Will spoke again.  
“Another month to convene  
Another month unseen  
In the night we flee  
Only where Apollo can see  
To appease our father  
We sing poems of scholar 

Our motivation is simple  
although we rhyme in riddle  
The end game is clear we speak only for a God to hear  
So if it should happen and our meeting be eventful  
Show yourself now and leave us not resentful”

Another span of silence followed, leaving Nico to wonder if something was happening. He was listening so intently he failed to notice that someone had joined him on the rocks, watching him with a blond eyebrow popped up inquisitively. 

“Curious thing, isn’t it?” the stranger asked.

Nico visibly jumped, shooting to his feet from his crouched position and stumbling backwards. Luckily he didn’t fall down the large pile of rocks and bust his head open. He couldn’t say standing before his boyfriend’s father in the middle of the woods late at night, obviously eaves dropping was any better, though. He momentarily thought about throwing himself down the rocks just to avoid embarrassment.

“Uh…um…I was only…” Nico stammered to come up with a reasonable explanation, other than sneaking around and spying.

“Investigating? Meddling? Peeping? Snooping? Examining?” Apollo said, the words coming from his mouth so quickly they were almost a blur. 

Trying his best to save his wounded pride Nico brushed some grey rock soot off his black sweatpants and stood a little taller. “Those all mean the same word.” He stated with a very matter-of-factly tone.

Apollo looked thoughtful for a moment, his blond eyebrows raised and his blue eyes turned up toward the sky. “Suppose they do. Anyway, how about I explain? We should walk while I do, I’m sure they are wondering where I am.” 

Nico nodded silently, following the Greek God down from the boulders until their feet touched solid earth again. 

“It is a funny little thing I made quite a while back, a meeting of sorts. They all come here and recite poetry, sing some songs. Typically only my children are welcome.” Apollo said, giving Nico an accusing glance from over his shoulder. 

If it had been light out Apollo would have seen the blush that crept onto Nico’s face, but luckily the shadows hid his embarrassment. “I didn’t know it would be something personal…” he muttered, crossing his arms to his chest as they walked around the pile of rocks to stand at the entrance. 

The dark tunnel now emitted a warm glow, presumably from the fire Nico was sure they had started. Even from this distance he could hear a girl speaking, followed in rhythm by a large drum.

“Eh, I suppose we can make an exception.” Apollo said with a wink, flashing Nico a rather flirtatious smile, the very same one that Will would give him, making him go weak in the knees. “And don’t worry, I won’t tell your Dad.” 

Apollo ducked his head and began to walk along the small tunnel, Nico taking a moment to gather his thoughts before following. It wasn’t like Apollo had much of a threat, he was sure his father wouldn’t spare a second thought to Nico sneaking around.  
It was his father, after all, who taught him many of his techniques. Hell, he was sure Hades would be amused more than anything. 

The tunnel grew smaller, forcing Nico the hunch down and draw his shoulder close together, making him wonder how any of the Apollo kids managed to fit any of their instruments through. Finally the space opened up into a small cave.

Stalactites and stalagmites clung to the ceiling and floor, in the center was a clearing, large enough for a pair of couches, some chairs, and a pit for the fire that was crackling with life. Currently a girl (Nico recognized her as Mellissa), was standing on the couch, a piece of paper in hand. She was getting ready to deliver what promised to be a strong line of poetry when they noticed the two new comers, stopping abruptly. 

“Nico?” Will stood from one of the couches, a bongo tumbling from his lap to the floor. 

“Dad!” Mellissa hopped off the furniture and rushed Apollo, flinging her arms around him in a smothering hug. A few of the young children also came running over enthusiastically, which Apollo welcomed. 

He asked each child how they were. Had Mark been working on his limericks? How about Ashley? Had she been taking harp lessons? A boy, probably the youngest of the group shyly approached the god and muttered something. Apollo scooped him up in a hug, holding the eight year old closely. He brushed the boy’s long golden locks out of his face, muttering something about “Your mother’s hair” before setting him down.

While Apollo continued to fuss over his kids Will approached Nico, his hands stuffed in his pockets the way they always were when he was irritated or uncomfortable. “What’re you doing here?” he asked, pulling his boyfriend closer to the edge of the cave by pinching his hoodie between his fingers. 

Nico’s expression looked pained, feeling guilty for invading what was turning into a very personal event. “I just….I mean…” he grabbed his skull ring and turned it around a few times on his finger anxiously. “I wanted to know what you guys were doing, that’s all. Then Apollo showed up.” 

A lame explanation, but he didn’t feel right lying to Will. 

“Why didn’t you just ask?” Will took Nico gently by the arm, pulling him back another step to move out of his brother’s way when he rushed by.

“I did! Well, maybe.” Nico frowned, momentarily wondering if he had ever asked or just grumpily sulked away. Typically Nico wasn’t shy about asking questions, but with Will he sometimes had difficulty saying what he wanted. When he wanted to ask something Will would give him that look, leaving Nico’s mind blank and stammering.

The corners of Will’s mouth turned up like he was trying to suppress a smile. “You never asked, Numb Skull.” 

Wrinkling his nose Nico tried to muster up a glare. “You never acted like you wanted to talk about it, lying all the time about why you didn’t want to hang out. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?”

Will winced, his blue eyes seeming to lose some of their spark. “I didn’t lie to hide anything from you. This is something only the Apollo cabin does. Before now no other demigod has been in here.”

“Sorry…”Nico looked down, moving a small pebble with the toe of his shoe. 

As Will was getting ready to speak Apollo came up, the young boy by his side still holding onto his hand. “Don’t worry about it kiddo, we can always make exceptions.” He said, clapping Will on the back with his free hand. 

“Now!” His voice grew, becoming the perfect tone for theatrics. “Enough chatter! I want to speak such sweet words that it would seem I had honey dripping from my mouth. Such words that my soul would move and my heart would weep!”

A few of the kids cheered and another banged his hands against his drum. Will laughed lightly and rolled his eyes, taking Nico’s hand and lacing their fingers together. A few of the kids squealed “Ewww” while another began singing a nursery rhyme about them. 

Nico’s face lit up a shameful color of pink, while Will only laughed it off. 

“Yes, yes.” Apollo said, “We all know they are adorable. Onto the next!” 

Nico and Will took a seat on a couch while Apollo flopped down on the floor, the young boy settling in his lap at the two watched with wondrous eyes when Mark stood.  
“This is a poem about a love unfound  
To such a thing we are all bound  
Late night I amble to the kitchen  
Unable to ignore my craving for some chicken-“

A few of the kids snapped their fingers in appreciation and Nico could feel Will’s body shake with silent laughter. Even Apollo seemed amused, a grin spread wide on his face.  
“In the silence I creep  
Afraid of Chrion, if he catches me I’ll weep  
At last my victory is in sight  
Only to find it had been eaten at dinner that night”

A round of laughter rang through the cave as Mark took a low, playful bow then flopped back down onto the couch. 

A few more poems were read while Will sat with Nico, occasionally taking a turn at playing an instrument or talking to one of the kids. The older members of the cabin began to clap their hands, Will and Apollo joining in. As their clapping became more frantic they all stood, leaving Nico, still sitting, baffled and the younger kids excited. 

“Time to get serious, kiddos.” Apollo said, giving the younger boy next to him, who was still clutching his t-shirt as if his life depended on it, a wink. “Will, you do the honors.”

Will withdrew a paper from his back pocket and began to unfold it as he stepped up onto the couch. He cleared his throat and tossed his head, trying to get some of his blonde locks away from his face so he could see properly. One of his brother’s took a bongo and struck it while another clattered his hand against the top of a drum. 

“Fire and Ice, written by Robert Frost-“ one of the younger kids groaned, earning a playful swipe from Will with his paper before continued like the interruption hadn’t happened.

“Some say the world will end in fire,  
Some say in ice.  
From what I’ve tasted of desire  
I hold with those who favor fire.  
But if it had to perish twice,  
I think I know enough of hate  
To say that for destruction ice  
Is also great  
And would suffice.”

A few fingers snapped and Will stepped down from the couch, while a group of three younger girls rolled their eyes. “Will, you do that one at least once a year.” 

Will shrugged a casual shrug, dismissing the accusation. “I like it.” He said, taking his seat next to Nico. 

As she was getting to say something else Apollo stood, and the whole cave hushed. Will pulled the younger boy into his lap and they all watched eagerly as Apollo, the young poetry God himself stepped up onto the old, red colored couch. With a handsome smirk he snapped his fingers. A golden scroll appeared in front of him, hovering in the air as it unrolled for him to read. 

“Jamisone, hit the saxophone when you feel it. Elliena, you’ve got the bongos.” He said, each of his children grabbing their respective instrument as instructed. 

A serious moment of silence followed. There were fidgets and glances, then a rough cough. Kids got comfortable, settling in their seat or lounging on the floor. Just as one of the kids took a breath to protest and tell Apollo to hurry up the God inhaled.

“Badger, badger, badger, badger  
MUSHROOM, MUSHROOM,”  
Apollo’s knees bent in rhyme with the stupid song, and he began flapping his arms up and down, the scroll disappearing.

Confused and slightly embarrassed for everyone in the room Nico looked around, his brown eyes alight with befuddlement. “Will, what-“

Before he could finish all the kids, including Will, sprang to their feet and yelled “ARH, SNAKE! IT’S A SNAKE!” 

Nico shrank away, hoping he could melt into the couch and disappear. Within seconds everyone was jumping and bouncing around. Apollo jumped from the couch and continued to sing. “Badger, badger, badger, badger-“ then the kid’s would finish, “MUSHROOM MUSHROOM.”

Apparently Nico was missing some very important inside joke.

Desperate to leave this crazy poetry party Nico’s eyes darted around the cave, searching for any trace of shadow large enough to help transport him back to his cabin.

As if sensing his escape Will leapt onto the couch next to Nico and clutched his wrist, jumping away and dragging Nico with him. “Sing!” he yelled, to which Nico blushed furiously and shook his head no, trying to pry his wrist from Will’s hand. 

“Forget it!” he shouted over the chanting, which was now complimented with the saxophone, bongos, a drum, and a damn tambourine (where that had come from, Nico had no idea).

Will was getting ready to protest Nico’s reserved manner when Apollo slung his arm around the back of Nico’s neck and proceeded to drag him around while his kids sang. “Nico! Sing with me!” 

And he did. An odd sensation welt up in his chest, filling him with a giddy and jubilant feeling. In an instant he not only wanted to sing, but he needed to sing. There was no living in that moment unless he sang, so he did. 

“ARH, SNAKE! IT’S A SNAKE!” They all yelled and laughed, all bouncing around in a large circle as they continuously repeated the silly song. 

It was now that Nico realized, Apollo could never, ever tell his father about this.


End file.
